1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a mop. In particular, this invention relates to a retractable mop having a wiper blade on one side and a drying roller on another side to eliminate excess water and soap residue.
2. The Prior Art
Various different styles of mops for cleaning floors, walls and glass have been used over time. The typical style that is commonly purchased by consumers for general floor cleaning consists of an oblong sponge mounted on a pole. There is usually a mechanism for wringing out the sponge without the user having to touch the wet sponge. This mechanism can be in the form of lateral rollers that extend to squeeze the sponge such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,201,079 to Camden, or a bending apparatus that folds the sponge in half and presses it together.
These mops are adequate for general cleaning purposes, but often leave a wet, soapy residue on the surface being cleaned. Several attempts have been made to improve on the typical mop to reduce the residue. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,655,248 to Kieson et al. discloses a wiper for a wringer mop having rollers of the above-mentioned type. The wiper is attached to the lower portion of the mop handle and has a flexible blade that extends across one side of the sponge portion of the mop. The blade is of the "squeegee" type and wipes the floor clean of any residue after the sponge travels over the floor. The wiper is able to contact the floor when the mop is placed at an angle of about 135 degrees relative to the floor.
While this device is an improvement over the basic sponge mop, a squeegee type wiper can still leave significant water residue on the surface being cleaned. This residue can lead to unsightly spotting, especially with very smooth surfaces such as glass and polished marble and granite.